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Archive: 2014 (111 Posts)

A man playing a guitar and singing to a close crowd of a dozen or so men and women

VHP’s Newest Online Exhibit: WWI Remembered

Posted by: Megan Harris

In a letter sent to his parents on November 10th, 1918, Navy Lieutenant Junior Grade Lucius B. Nash wrote, “I expect as I set here writing tonight history is being made as it never was before, and people all over the whole world are thinking of just one thing–“Will Germany accept the Armistice?” As Nash …

A man playing a guitar and singing to a close crowd of a dozen or so men and women

Ask Us Anything: Our Most Frequently Asked Questions

Posted by: Kate Stewart

October was American Archives Month, and last Thursday was Ask an Archivist Day. In honor of that event (although a little late), we decided to compile a list of Frequently Asked Questions that we often get– not necessarily reference questions, but those from our own friends and family or when we introduce ourselves as employees …

A man playing a guitar and singing to a close crowd of a dozen or so men and women

#FolklifeHalloween2014 Rolls On!

Posted by: Stephen Winick

If you’ve been following Folklife Today recently, you’ll know that we’re in the midst of collecting people’s photos of Halloween and Dia de los Muertos in a new online collecting initiative. We still want you to share your photos!  Find out how in our previous blog posts featuring an overview of the project and step-by-step …

A man playing a guitar and singing to a close crowd of a dozen or so men and women

Guess Who’s Turning 1?

Posted by: Stephen Winick

It’s hard to believe, but October 30, 2014 is the first anniversary of Folklife Today! A lot can happen in a year, so we thought we’d take a little trip through the highlights of our first year. I’ll begin with the sad things. Just three months after our debut, the great folksinger Pete Seeger died, …

A man playing a guitar and singing to a close crowd of a dozen or so men and women

Folklorists partner with archives to create ‘living archives’ of folk arts documentation

Posted by: Nicole Saylor

In April, Maryland Traditions, a program of the Maryland State Arts Council (MSAC), transferred its archives to the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. Sustainability of folklore fieldwork collections is a pressing issue for many state folk arts agencies throughout the United States. I recently had the opportunity to talk with state folklorist Clifford Murphy about …

A man playing a guitar and singing to a close crowd of a dozen or so men and women

October 27 — World Day for Audiovisual Heritage

Posted by: Stephen Winick

The Following is a guest post by Judith Gray, ethnomusicologist and coordinator of reference in the American Folklife Center. In the last decades of the 19th century, Thomas Edison and his contemporaries in Europe created various devices for capturing sound [1]. These inventions, in turn, led to the creation of audiovisual archives. The first two …

A man playing a guitar and singing to a close crowd of a dozen or so men and women

FolklifeHalloween2014 is Underway!

Posted by: Stephen Winick

FolklifeHalloween2014 is underway!  This is the first day we’ve asked people to share their Halloween and Day of the Dead photos on Flickr with the tag #FolklifeHalloween2014.  Of course, a few early birds had already begun to use the tag last week, like Daniel Baker, whose photo from 2009 is above. Others shared photos of …

A man playing a guitar and singing to a close crowd of a dozen or so men and women

Disabled Veterans Never Cease to Inspire

Posted by: Lisa Taylor

October is National Disability Employment Awareness Month, a time that is set aside not only to raise awareness about disability employment issues, but also to celebrate the contributions of America’s workers who have disabilities. According to the United States Department of Labor, more than twenty percent of the nation’s workforce is comprised of people with …

A man playing a guitar and singing to a close crowd of a dozen or so men and women

Guess Who’s Turning 100?

Posted by: Stephen Winick

Whether you’ve been a follower of Folklife Today from the outset, or you’ve only recently joined us, we’d like you to help us celebrate a milestone: this is our 100th post! And what better way to mark that point on our journey than to announce a centennial celebration? So I’m pleased to announce AFC’s 2015 …